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Samsung announced that it will begin increasing production of its 12nm DDR5 RAM, which uses a 12-nanometer (nm) class process node. This mass production of said RAM — coming when the overall market for memory chips has seen a decline — is evidence of the manufacturer’s intent to remain the industry leader.
The power consumption of the new chips, Samsung said, has been reduced by 23% compared to the previous generation, meaning server and data center operators are able to reduce their energy consumption and carbon footprint. The new chip also has a maximum speed of 7.2Gbps, giving it a processing speed of 60GB per second. And although these chips are primarily aimed at data centers, AI, and more advanced computing applications, hardcore gamers will definitely benefit from the increased specs.
This follows the news of Samsung developing 14nm based 16GB DDR5 RAM was announced in November 2021 and was approved for use Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon Mobile Platform in March 2022,
ZDNet reported that the new RAM has “already been verified for compatibility with AMD in December (2022)” and that Samsung is currently working with more global IT companies.
This could be a game changer for gamers
Samsung’s announcement of mass production of 12nm DDR5 RAM is great news for a lot of industries, including gaming. Not only because it would make the technology more readily available, but also cheaper. One of the ways this is supported is that the new chip has 20% higher wafer productivity, meaning more chips can be produced from a single wafer due to the smaller size compared to the previous generation.
Back in 2022, it was already reported that the price per GB was going down from 2021. according to statistics computer baseMemory is expected to cost €5 per gigabyte (around $5 / £4 / AU$7.50) in 2022, a sharp reduction from the €15 per gigabyte (around $16 / £13 / AU$22) average in late 2021.
Now with this Samsung news, we’ll not only see more advanced 12nm-based RAM but an overall reduction in price for DDR5 RAM due to much higher supply. And since the tech giant has confirmed that its new memory is compatible with AMD products, expect to see new RAM in both its graphics cards and processors.
Absolutely, compatibility is another issueAs for DDR5, in general, it requires an AMD AM5 or Intel LGA 1700 socket motherboard to support it. While AMD’s Zen 4 chips already require it, the problem is the lack of backward compatibility with DDR4, but it’s not as big of a deal as it was last year. As more companies adapt to the DDR5 format, it will have to smooth over time and advancements.
